Promotion of mental health literacy and mental wellbeing in a Portuguese unemployed sample: Effectiveness assessment of a capacity building communitybased intersectoral intervention Maria João Heitor dos Santos1,2 (
[email protected]), Sérgio Moreira1,3, Alexandra Dinis1, Ana Virgolino1, Joana Carreiras1, Rosário Rosa1, Sara Ambrósio1, Elisa Lopes1, Tânia Fernandes1, Osvaldo Santos1 1 Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de Lisboa, Instituto de Medicina Preventiva e Saúde Pública, Instituto de Saúde Ambiental, Lisboa, Portugal 2 Hospital Beatriz Ângelo, Departamento de Psiquiatria e Saúde Mental, Loures, Portugal 3 Faculdade de Psicologia da Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
The Healthy Employment (HE) Project was granted by the Public Health Initiatives Programme (PT06), financed by EEA Grants Financial Mechanism 2009-2014.
Healthy Employment video presentation
Introduction
Main objective of this poster
Economic crises have consequences on labor market by increasing unemployment and precarious work, with evidence-based impact on mental health and psychological wellbeing1. In the first trimester of 2016, unemployment rate in Portugal was 12.3% and youth unemployment was even higher (30%)2. Deleterious effects of unemployment affect individual, relational and professional realms3,4 and may hinder an effective return to paid employment5,6–8. These negative health effects can be attenuated or prevented through the implementation of health promotion multidisciplinary actions involving several societal sectors9. In Portugal, there is a deficit of mental health promotion programs15 focused on building capacity, resilience and mental wellbeing6,10,11. In this poster, a standardized intervention for psychological wellbeing promotion among unemployed is briefly described, as well as its implementation and effectiveness evaluation.
To describe the effectiveness evaluation of a community-based intervention for mental health promotion.
General aims of the HE project The HE intervention aimed: (i) to reduce inequalities linked with employment instability in a context of economic crisis, (ii) to contribute to mental health and psychological wellbeing promotion for the unemployed, (iii) to prevent common mental disorders, and (iv) to significantly improve mental health literacy while promoting psychological wellbeing.
Methods A five-modules group intervention (life-work balance; impact of unemployment on psychological wellbeing and mental health; mental health related personal and perceived stigma; depression and anxiety; health promotion) distributed by 20 hours was developed based on literature reviews and a Delphi panel. The intervention was tested with unemployed individuals from two public employment centers (PEC), Sines and Loures, by a multidisciplinary team, following a standardized procedure manual. Inclusion criteria: 18-65 years old; registration in PEC for less than a year; minimum of nine years of formal education. Control groups from the same PEC followed the asusual job-search program. Measures of mental health literacy, psychological wellbeing, life satisfaction and resilience were collected through an online questionnaire before and one week after intervention. For effectiveness evaluation, all statistical procedures followed an intention-to-treat analysis strategy.
Results Overall, 87 unemployed participated: 48% allocated to the intervention group (IG), 56% women (21-64 years old), 15 years of average education. The overall experimental mortality was 38% (similar to both control and experimental groups). Mixed measures ANOVA showed that the interaction between time and group was significant for psychological wellbeing and mental health literacy measures. The IG showed better self-reported psychological wellbeing and improved mental health literacy after intervention, compared to controls between baseline and moment 1 in Sines and Loures (Figures 1-3). No significant interactions were found for life satisfaction and resilience.
Conclusions This study shows the contribution of short-term community-based interventions in increasing mental health literacy and psychological wellbeing among unemployed. It is fundamental to develop intervention programs targeting mental health promotion in vulnerable groups, namely those experiencing unemployment, as they face an increased risk of psychological distress, namely in times of socioeconomic adverse climate. The described intervention is foreseen as strategic and with a role in building capacity, due to its applicability to different regions, sectors and targeted populations.
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